Introduction
The high school-aged students in the town of West Greenwich have a few options for where they can attend high school. They can either go to Exeter-West Greenwich Regional High School (grades 9-12), which is the public high school that is combined with the town of Exeter so that the student body is adequately large, or go to The Greene School, and independent charter school for grades 9-11. Exeter-West Greenwich (EWG) has about 600 students enrolled from Exeter and West Greenwich, Rhode Island (Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE), 2012). This report will address some of the key attributes of Exeter-West Greenwich Regional High School such as the make-up of the teacher and student body, student health and safety, student performance on standardized tests and funding. Teachers
When it comes to experience, it seems like the teachers at EWG have plenty of it. Fifty percent of the teachers at EWG have taught for more than 20 years, compared with the state average of teachers who’ve also taught for 20 years of 24.5% (RIDE, 2012). Many teachers have also taught at the school for a long time. 32.7% of teachers at EWG have taught there for over twenty years, while only 8.1% of Rhode Island teachers have taught at the same school for over twenty years (SurveyWorks). Impressively, 52.6% of EWG teachers have received a masters degree, which is a little higher than the state average of 48.4%. Of all the teachers at EWG, 26.9% teach math, 15.4% teach language arts, 19.2% teach reading, and 13.5% teach sciences (SurveyWorks). These high percentages seem to reflect the trend in public schools focusing their energy on teaching math and language in order to prepare students for standardized testing. All other elective subjects, such as the arts, health, and physical education have less than 10% of staff teaching these subjects. Interestingly, 36.4% of teachers at EWG report that the practices they’re being asked to implement into their lesson plans aren’t effective. In addition, 75% of teachers believe that the teacher performance evaluation process is unfair (SurveyWorks). These statistics indicate that teachers at the school aren’t happy with the way that administrators are asking them to design their curriculum, and that they aren't being evaluated fairly. This is probably a result of the emphasis that administrators are putting on standardized tests like the NECAP. (SurveyWorks) Students
1. Student Body General Makeup
Compared with the rest of the state, Exeter West Greenwich Regional doesn’t have a diverse student body. It consists of about 95% white, 3.8% black, 1.7% Asian, 4.0% Native American, and 2.9% Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (percentages>100% because students were able to identify themselves as more than one race) (SurveyWorks). The portion of the student body at EWG receiving free lunch is 8%, and the portion receiving reduced lunch is 4%, which are relatively low figures (US News). Comparable to state averages, 11% of students at EWG are receiving special education, while the state average is 15% (RIDE, 2012). The teacher to student ratio is pretty low at 1:9, while the rest of the state averages at about 1:11 (RIDE, 2012). Of the students in the class of 2013, 79.8% planned to go to a four-year college after graduation, and 14.1% planned to attend community college, which leaves 6.1% of the class going on to work, or take time off the figure out a plan. (SurveyWorks)
2. Student Health/Safety
The health of student’s at Exeter West Greenwich is comparable to the health and safety of students in the states of Rhode Island as a whole. Reported cases of asthma at EWG are at 24.8% of the student body, compared to 24.9% of students in Rhode Island. Cases of depression effect 14.5% of EWG’s students, which is low compared to the state average of 29.2% of Rhode Island students reporting depression. The majority of students “agree” that they feel safe in and out of school, and take safety drills seriously, which is also true for the majority of students in the state of Rhode Island. The percentage of students at EWG who have reported at least 1 type of bullying is 36.7%, while 49.7% of Rhode Island students have reported at least one type of bullying. In addition, only 4.4% of students have reported seeing a fight at EWG in the last year, while 9.4% of Rhode Island students have reported witnessing a fight. The drug use at EWG seems pretty high, with 56.8% of students reporting marijuana use in the last month. However, this is almost equivalent to the state average of 57% of Rhode Island students using marijuana in the last 30 days. (SurveyWorks)
3. Student Performance
In the last school year (2012-2013), students at EWG performed well above state averages on the state standardized test known as the NECAP (given to 11th grade students). In the field of math, 61% of students scored proficient, compared to 34% of students in Rhode Island. In reading, a whopping 93% of students scored proficient, while only 79% of Rhode Island 11th graders met the same standard. In writing, 62% of EWG students scored proficient, while 50% of Rhode Island students met the same standard. In the field of science, 54% of EWG students scored proficient, while only 32% of the state’s students met the same standard. Based off of these standardized test scores, students at EWG seem to be performing above average in the areas of math, science, reading, and writing. (RIDE, 2012) Funding
The residents of West Greenwich seem better off compared with the average resident in the rest of the state, which in turn, benefits the school. For towns with financially secure residents, schools can obtain more funding from the town because the town can implement more/higher taxes on its residents. For example, the district property value per student in West Greenwich is $833,219.14 as of 2009. In addition, the district median family income in the town is $72,745, which is higher than the state average. The district per pupil expenditure for West Greenwich students is $16,778, which is much higher than most of the other districts in the state of Rhode Island. This figure is important, because it determines how much money Exeter-West Greenwich has to pay its charter school counter-part, The Greene School, every time one of their students transfers there. (RIDE, 2012) Conclusion
Exeter-West Greenwich Regional High School seems to be a safe, academically sound environment for all of its students. The student body as a whole is performing better than average on standardized tests, and seem to be pleased with their teachers according a survey taken by students distributed by RIDE. Students, overall, are happy with the curriculum and their teachers, while teachers seem to be preparing their students well in the classroom for tests and for a continued education after high school. The small student body and low teacher to student ratio is ideal for a nurturing and encouraging learning environment for every student.
Introduction
The high school-aged students in the town of West Greenwich have a few options for where they can attend high school. They can either go to Exeter-West Greenwich Regional High School (grades 9-12), which is the public high school that is combined with the town of Exeter so that the student body is adequately large, or go to The Greene School, and independent charter school for grades 9-11. Exeter-West Greenwich (EWG) has about 600 students enrolled from Exeter and West Greenwich, Rhode Island (Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE), 2012). This report will address some of the key attributes of Exeter-West Greenwich Regional High School such as the make-up of the teacher and student body, student health and safety, student performance on standardized tests and funding.
Teachers
When it comes to experience, it seems like the teachers at EWG have plenty of it. Fifty percent of the teachers at EWG have taught for more than 20 years, compared with the state average of teachers who’ve also taught for 20 years of 24.5% (RIDE, 2012). Many teachers have also taught at the school for a long time. 32.7% of teachers at EWG have taught there for over twenty years, while only 8.1% of Rhode Island teachers have taught at the same school for over twenty years (SurveyWorks). Impressively, 52.6% of EWG teachers have received a masters degree, which is a little higher than the state average of 48.4%. Of all the teachers at EWG, 26.9% teach math, 15.4% teach language arts, 19.2% teach reading, and 13.5% teach sciences (SurveyWorks). These high percentages seem to reflect the trend in public schools focusing their energy on teaching math and language in order to prepare students for standardized testing. All other elective subjects, such as the arts, health, and physical education have less than 10% of staff teaching these subjects. Interestingly, 36.4% of teachers at EWG report that the practices they’re being asked to implement into their lesson plans aren’t effective. In addition, 75% of teachers believe that the teacher performance evaluation process is unfair (SurveyWorks). These statistics indicate that teachers at the school aren’t happy with the way that administrators are asking them to design their curriculum, and that they aren't being evaluated fairly. This is probably a result of the emphasis that administrators are putting on standardized tests like the NECAP. (SurveyWorks)
Students
1. Student Body General Makeup
Compared with the rest of the state, Exeter West Greenwich Regional doesn’t have a diverse student body. It consists of about 95% white, 3.8% black, 1.7% Asian, 4.0% Native American, and 2.9% Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (percentages>100% because students were able to identify themselves as more than one race) (SurveyWorks). The portion of the student body at EWG receiving free lunch is 8%, and the portion receiving reduced lunch is 4%, which are relatively low figures (US News). Comparable to state averages, 11% of students at EWG are receiving special education, while the state average is 15% (RIDE, 2012). The teacher to student ratio is pretty low at 1:9, while the rest of the state averages at about 1:11 (RIDE, 2012). Of the students in the class of 2013, 79.8% planned to go to a four-year college after graduation, and 14.1% planned to attend community college, which leaves 6.1% of the class going on to work, or take time off the figure out a plan. (SurveyWorks)
2. Student Health/Safety
The health of student’s at Exeter West Greenwich is comparable to the health and safety of students in the states of Rhode Island as a whole. Reported cases of asthma at EWG are at 24.8% of the student body, compared to 24.9% of students in Rhode Island. Cases of depression effect 14.5% of EWG’s students, which is low compared to the state average of 29.2% of Rhode Island students reporting depression. The majority of students “agree” that they feel safe in and out of school, and take safety drills seriously, which is also true for the majority of students in the state of Rhode Island. The percentage of students at EWG who have reported at least 1 type of bullying is 36.7%, while 49.7% of Rhode Island students have reported at least one type of bullying. In addition, only 4.4% of students have reported seeing a fight at EWG in the last year, while 9.4% of Rhode Island students have reported witnessing a fight. The drug use at EWG seems pretty high, with 56.8% of students reporting marijuana use in the last month. However, this is almost equivalent to the state average of 57% of Rhode Island students using marijuana in the last 30 days. (SurveyWorks)
3. Student Performance
In the last school year (2012-2013), students at EWG performed well above state averages on the state standardized test known as the NECAP (given to 11th grade students). In the field of math, 61% of students scored proficient, compared to 34% of students in Rhode Island. In reading, a whopping 93% of students scored proficient, while only 79% of Rhode Island 11th graders met the same standard. In writing, 62% of EWG students scored proficient, while 50% of Rhode Island students met the same standard. In the field of science, 54% of EWG students scored proficient, while only 32% of the state’s students met the same standard. Based off of these standardized test scores, students at EWG seem to be performing above average in the areas of math, science, reading, and writing. (RIDE, 2012)
Funding
The residents of West Greenwich seem better off compared with the average resident in the rest of the state, which in turn, benefits the school. For towns with financially secure residents, schools can obtain more funding from the town because the town can implement more/higher taxes on its residents. For example, the district property value per student in West Greenwich is $833,219.14 as of 2009. In addition, the district median family income in the town is $72,745, which is higher than the state average. The district per pupil expenditure for West Greenwich students is $16,778, which is much higher than most of the other districts in the state of Rhode Island. This figure is important, because it determines how much money Exeter-West Greenwich has to pay its charter school counter-part, The Greene School, every time one of their students transfers there. (RIDE, 2012)
Conclusion
Exeter-West Greenwich Regional High School seems to be a safe, academically sound environment for all of its students. The student body as a whole is performing better than average on standardized tests, and seem to be pleased with their teachers according a survey taken by students distributed by RIDE. Students, overall, are happy with the curriculum and their teachers, while teachers seem to be preparing their students well in the classroom for tests and for a continued education after high school. The small student body and low teacher to student ratio is ideal for a nurturing and encouraging learning environment for every student.
Works Cited
InfoWorks! Rhode Island Education Data Reporting - RIDE.ri.gov. (n.d.). Retrieved October 29, 2013, from http://infoworks.ride.ri.gov/school/exeter-west-greenwich-regional-high-school
InfoWorks! Rhode Island Education Data Reporting - RIDE.ri.gov. (n.d.). Retrieved October 29, 2013, from http://infoworks.ride.ri.gov/school/exeter-west-greenwich-regional-high-school
surveyworks-2012-2013-exeter-west-greenwich-regional-high-school-student-parent-teacher-hs.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://infoworks.ride.ri.gov/files/surveyworks/2012-2013/combined/surveyworks-2012-2013-exeter-west-greenwich-regional-high-school-student-parent-teacher-hs.pdf
Exeter-West Greenwich Regional High School in WEST GREENWICH, RI | Best High Schools | US News. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2013, from http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/rhode-island/districts/exeter-west-greenwich/exeter-west-greenwich-regional-high-school-17483